1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to chewing gums and in particular to the use of lactose-hydrolyzed whey or whey fractions in such products.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As is well known in the art, chewing gums generally include: (1) a gum base component composed of, for example, an ester gum, polyvinyl acetate, latex solids, natural and/or synthetic rubbers, waxes, texturizers and bulking agents; (2) a water soluble sweetener component composed of natural sugars such as sucrose and dextrose, and/or artificial sweeteners such as sodium or calcium saccharin, cyclamates, dihydrochalcones, glycyrrhizin, and glycyrrhizinates; (3) an emulsifier component, e.g., lecithin; (4) a plasticizer component, such as corn syrup; and (5) a flavoring component.
Over the years, various attempts have been made to replace one or more of the components of chewing gum with less expensive or more functionally effective materials. For example, attempts have been made to incorporate proteins and monosaccharides as replacements for the water soluble sweetener component. Also, monosaccharide syrups, such as glucose syrups, have been tried as replacements for the plasticizer. Unfortunately, gums including ingredients such as these turned out to be relatively too soft and tended to disintegrate in the user's mouth. Also, such gums were generally sticky and hygroscopic.
In recent years, specialized chewing gum products, including "soft" chewing gums and "athletic" chewing gums, have become popular. Soft gums typically include more water than conventional chewing gums. This has tended to make these gums sticky. Athletic chewing gums are designed to promote salivation. In general, this result has been achieved through the addition of such ingredients as potassium and sodium salts and acids to the chewing gum formulation.
This invention is directed to a new, highly functional, inexpensive material for use in chewing gum comprising lactose-hydrolyzed whey or lactose-hydrolyzed whey fractions. As discussed in detail below, it has been found, quite surprisingly, that such materials can be used to replace all or a part of the soluble sweetener, emulsifier and/or plasticizer components of chewing gum. These materials also provide a means for softening chewing gum without increasing its tackiness. Further, certain of the whey-based materials automatically lead to greater salivation by the user without the need to incorporate additional ingredients in the gum formulation.
Whole whey typically contains, per liter, approximately 6 to 9 grams of protein, 45 to 50 grams of lactose, 6 to 8 grams of mineral salts, and 1 to 2 grams of fat. On a world-wide basis, the production of whey each year is estimated to be over 50 billion pounds. Whey thus represents a potentially important natural source of food for human consumption, provided it can be modified from its original state so as to make it palatable and functional in combination with other food ingredients.
Unfortunately, whey, as it is produced during the cheese manufacturing process, is of limited value for use in commercial food products. Indeed, in the past, whey was regarded as a waste product and was discharged into sewers or streams and rivers. Today, however, because of increasing concerns over environmental pollution, much of the whey which is produced is subjected to some processing so that at a minimum it can be used as animal feed. Using whey as an animal feed, however, is a low value application and does not effectively take advantage of the true food value of whey.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a practical means to use the food value of whey, and at the same time, in view of the low cost of whey, to reduce the cost of chewing gum products.